16th North Carolina Infantry | Spared & Shared 23

This rare letter was written in pencil by Lorraine Walker Griffin (1834-1907), the son of William Lewis Griffin and Elizabeth Suttle of Forest City, Rutherford county, North Carolina. Lorraine enlisted on 1 Jun 1861 and was mustered into Capt. H. D. Lee’s Company, 6th NC Volunteers. This unit was later designated Co. D, 16th NC Infantry Regt. He was admitted to the Confederate Hospital in Winchester, VA on 1 October 1862 with a gunshot wound to his hand. He was transferred to Chimborazo Hospital, Richmond, VA on 3 Octpber 1862. He was furloughed for 60 days on 19 October 1862. He apparently did not return to duty when his furlough ended and was listed as awol in December 1862. He returned to duty by Feb 1863 and was present and accounted for through July 1863. He was admitted to Chimborazo Hospital again on 13 July 1863 with pneumonia. He was transferred to Camp Winder, Richmond, VA on 15 Aug 1863. He was promoted to 4th Sgt. on 1 October 1864 held the same rank when paroled at Appomattox, Virginia, on 9 April 1865.

In his letter of 26 May 1864, Lorraine describes the recent action of the fight at North Anna, 23-26, 1864.

Transcription

In Line of Battle near Hanover Junction
May 26, [1864]

Dear Sister,

I take my pen in hand to let you know I am still alive but don’t know how long I may be alive for they are [ ] our entrenchments. We are well fortified. I have been in some hard fights and came through safe. I do pray to come through safe. Dear sister, I have never saw Mr. Green yet. He passed me one day and I looked for him but did not see him. His regiment has been in fights since then I can’t hear from him nor brother. They may both be killed.

We have lost 8 or 10 men out of our company taken prisoner—some killed. [In] the fight the other day we lost two men, one Crampton taken prisoner. Eli Gross was killed or taken one, I don’t know which. We charged the Yanks and got them to running and General [Edward L.] Thomas’ Brigade run, then our Brigade [Alfred M. Scales’ Brigade] was left alone. Then the 13th, 34th, 38th all run and left the 16th and 22nd by theirself. We fought two hours and go so near broke down we like never to got out. A heap did never get out for they was so tired to go.

The Yankees is [with]in about 1,000 yards of us. Our lines is about 35 or 40 miles long. They reach to Richmond, I expect. We will go to Richmond [illegible].

Sister, I received a letter from you the day before we started and was glad to hear from you and could not answer it but I wrote to you a few days before that. You spoke [illegible]… I have never wrote to her since I got back. Did she say for me to write to her and put it in your letter or not? I did not understand. Please tell me if she said so or not. I will never write to her till she makes her acknowledgements for not writing to me when I write to her. Miss Salley Gross has quit writing to me. We have quit forever.

Sister, this is no place to talk about the gals. I ought to be praying though I am praying every minute and hope my friends thinks of me in their prayers at home. Sister, I will close for this time—maybe the last letter ever I have the chance of writing to my beloved sister. I remain your brother till death. L. W. Griffin

These letters were written by Nancy L. Griffin, the daughter of William Lewis Griffin (1797-1887) and Elizabeth Suttle (1796-1855). William Griffin owned several thousand acres of land in Cool Spring township of Rutherford county, North Carolina, and he owned many slaves. At the time these letters were written in 1862-62, he was serving as the Register of Deeds in Rutherford county. Nancy wrote the letters to her sister, Mary Ann (Griffin) Green (1822-1906), the wife of James Lee Green (1796-1864). James was conscripted into the Confederate service in August 1863 and served in Co. H, 30th North Carolina Infantry. He was taken a prisoner at the Spottsylvania on 18 May 1864, and eventually placed in the prison at Elmira, New York, in August 1864 where he died on 4 October 1864 of chronic diarrhea.

The letter of 15 September was written jointly by Nancy, her sister Matilda Daniel Griffin, and her father. The year was not given but we know from the mention of the death of Henry C. Ford, Co. G, 16th North Carolina, who drowned in the Valley River in Virginia, on 20 August 1861, that the year was 1861.

In her letter of 14 May 1862, Nancy mentions having received word from her brothers, Sgt. Lorraine Walker (“Walk” or “Loran”) Griffin (1838-1907) and James M. Griffin (1837-1862) of Co. D, 16th North Carolina Infantry. Walk survived the war; James did not.

Letter 1

September 15 [1861]

Dear Brother & Sister,

I will drop you a line this evening to let you know we have not forgotten you both although we have been careless about writing to you. We have so many letters to send to the boys, they hardly miss a week & always beg for letters from home and say that it is all the pleasure they see is reading a letter from Father. We got a letter from them this week dated the 27th. They were well and had no battle yet. James did not write. We do not know the cause unless he was off with the wagon. Mr. Wood says when he left them he was driving a wagon.

I suppose you have heard of Henry Ford. He was drowned. The Yankeys found his body several miles below and sent our men word if he was thern and [if] they wanted him, to bring a flag of truce and come after him.

Loran says paper is 10 cents a sheet and none at that, & tobacco a dollar a plug. You may know he is in a bad fix. The last letter he sent was wrote of a book leaf. Father has sent them some paper by mail and is going to send some by hand. They say they have sent back here for a preacher and a doctor for they have a heap of sickness in the camps, but from the way the most of them write, I think they are preparing for sickness and battle too. Loran appeared in his two last letters to be in good heart & I hope the good Lord is with them.

This leaves us all well with the hope of finding you the same. — M. Daniel

The boys says they are coming to the camp meeting if they can. It is the first of October. Write tome if you can’t come when you expect to be confined & I will try to come. I can leave the little boys at grandpa’s and take little Jimmy & come, I think. Yours sister, — Matilda Daniel

[in another hand]

James & Mary, I am well and up. I feel it my duty to go and defend my country & you need not be surprised to hear of me being off. I should like to see you all. Tell [ ] to come & see me & kiss Diby for me. I have a little brandy & if you will come, we will take a drain. Your Father, — W. L. Griffin

[in a different hand]

P. S. To my dear brother & sister. I seat myself to let you know that we are all well. I would be glad to see you & your family but I can’t tell when I can come for we have to pull fodder now. If I can hear when the camp meeting is down there, I will try to come if I can. The camp meeting at Rock Spring is the first Sunday in this month. I can’t write much for Mat & Mag. D. is reading and I can’t write. Write to us soon. When I can I will write more. I remain your sister, — N Griffin

Letter 2

*Addressed to Mr. Jas. L. Green, Camp Call, North Carolina*

[Cool Spring, Rutherford county, North Carolina]
May 14, 1862

Dear brother & sister,

I drop you a few lines to let you know that we are all well at this time & hoping those may find you all the same. I have not much to write—only to let you know how we are & to hear from brothers. We received two letters from them last week & they were well when they wrote last. Their letter was wrote the first of May. It came by hand. The boy that cooked for them has come home but is going back again. They said they had to cook 2 days rations for they would be in a fight the last day. There is no doubt of it for they have had one. The last that was heard from Williamsburg, they were a fighting. The news is that there was five hundred of our men killed and wounded. They had taken a great many prisoners for Mr. Spencer Eaves was at Richmond & saw them & had not heard from them that day. Walk said they were pressed in & could not get home. I think it hard. He said if he lived through the fight, they would try to come home. James said he was fat & sassy.

Mary, we heard last night that Mr. Green was gone. If he is, write to us & if he is not, write so we can hear from you all. Mr. Champin said he heard he was gone & several others from down there. They are all ordered from here—over 18 & under 35. Them that is thirty-five has a chance to stay a while longer but I don’t know how long. There was two deaths here last week. Old Mr. Daniel, a great m— [illegible due to paper tear]

Mary, kiss the babies for me. I would like to see you all but I don’t know when we can come for we are not done planting corn yet. Vina & Mat is a plowing now & I hope to quit writing to get their supper for them. So no more at present but remain your dearest sister. Write soon. — N L. Griffin

to James L. Green & M. A. Green